Kimi Antonelli drove from pole position to victory on Sunday during the Belgian GP. The young Italian faced strong resistance from a fast Charles Leclerc, but ultimately managed to keep the Ferrari driver behind him and secured his sixth win in Formula 1. His performance stands in stark contrast to his first F1 race at Spa-Francorchamps; in 2025 he was already eliminated in Q1 and finished far outside the points.
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During the official FIA press conference, Antonelli was asked about the huge difference compared to last year. Had he expected twelve months ago to be so dominant at Spa? “No, absolutely not,” the young Italian laughed honestly. “Last year I probably hit a low point here. Spa was an incredibly difficult weekend for me, especially mentally. In that respect, this year was definitely an improvement,” he continued modestly.
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Mercedes teammate George Russell was considered the title favorite before the new F1 season, but to everyone’s surprise Antonelli has become the man to beat at the Silberpfeile. The current World Championship standings underline that. Russell did retire in Belgium after a collision with Lewis Hamilton, but even in qualifying he could not match his 19-year-old teammate. Antonelli now has six wins in 2026, compared to zero for the Englishman. Mechanical issues aside, the Italian has also finished on the podium every time this season. “I definitely did not expect that last year,” he emphasized again. “After last year, I really did not see this coming.”
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Read everything about the Belgian GP here
